With the advent of the Internet, wireless networks, and portable electronic devices, there has been an explosion of location-based information that can be disseminated based upon the location of the recipient. Specifically, it is known to automatically detect the proximity of an electronic device such as a cell phone, smartphone or PDA to a particular location, and select electronic content for transmission to that electronic device that has a particular relevancy to that location. For example, a user that is detected to be presently within one mile of a car dealership would be a prime target for an advertising campaign for that dealership, or for the type of cars sold at that dealership. An advertiser could transmit advertising electronic content to that person's portable electronic device once the proximity to the dealership is detected.
The effectiveness of location based advertising is greatly enhanced by inferring more than just a simple location/proximity relationship between the user and the goods/services being advertised. If the advertiser can deduce the demographics of people likely present at a given location, then a more sophisticated advertising strategy can be utilized (i.e. one that maximizes the effectiveness of advertising by better matching content to a demographic of people that is more likely to purchase the advertised goods or services). For example, if a user is detected at an arena during a wedding accessories convention, or during a children's play, or during a technology trade show, then a demographic of young women, or of parents, or of high-tech professionals respectively can be inferred for those people carrying electronic devices at that location during those events. Advertising specifically targeted to those demographics (but separate and apart from the event that brought that demographic together) could be transmitted during these events. In that case, trendy clothes ads could be sent to those at the wedding accessories convention, or toy advertisements could be sent to those attending the children's play, or ads for electronic gadgets could be sent to those attending the trade show. The associations between these events and the ads would be indirect (i.e. the ads are not directly related to the events, but rather they are related to something about the event that drives who attends it and why certain advertising would be generally more effective for this group of attendees).
Unfortunately, the demographics of people present at any given location at any given time are usually complex and driven by multiple factors. Even with larger events such as a concert or sporting event, there can be many factors that determine the demographic mix of people present at any given location at any given time. Thus, transmitting content based merely on location often times is insufficient to maximize advertising effectiveness.
There is a need for a system and methodology of tracking various factors that dictate why people may be present at any given location and time, and for identifying which electronic content would be suitable for sending to those people depending upon the various advertising campaigns to choose from.